The FTSE 100 ended the week with a 1.5% increase. Leading the gains was NatWest, which saw its shares climb 7.09% following the confirmation of its new chief executive.
Close behind was the mining firm Antofagasta, with a 5.65% rise. On the downside, Airtel Africa experienced the largest drop, falling 3.22%, with Vodafone next, declining 1.41%.
The FTSE 250 witnessed a modest rise of 0.48%. Topping the gainers were Baltic Classifieds, advancing 4.63%, and Tui, increasing 4.02%. The largest decline was seen in Close Brothers, down 2.98%, followed by Trainline, which fell 2.66%.
Tekcapital PLC (LSE:TEK), a small-cap investment group, enjoyed significant achievements from its portfolio companies.
The company celebrated the AIM market debut of MicroSalt PLC (AIM:SALT), in which Tekcapital owns a 77% stake. This month since the listing, the value of its investment in the low-sodium snack provider soared by over 128%.
This surge in MicroSalt’s value followed the announcement of a partnership with American Trading International for exporting, potentially opening up 80 global markets for the company.
In another development, Belluscura, a medical device company with a 7.7% investment from Tekcapital, saw its shares jump 24% after finalizing a distribution deal with Sunset Healthcare Solutions, a Chicago-based home medical equipment firm.
These strong performances from its portfolio companies led to a more than 50% increase in Tekcapital’s share price, reaching 16.75p.
Elsewhere, Audioboom Group PLC (AIM:BOOM) experienced a 10% rise in shares on Friday morning, culminating in a 12% weekly gain. This was attributed to the podcast distributor’s announcement of a record number of unique listeners in January, with over 38.6 million worldwide, compared to the previous quarter’s monthly average of 34.4 million.
Stuart Last, the CEO of Audioboom, highlighted the company’s success in expanding its listener base more rapidly than competitors.
Sondel maintained its upward momentum, fueled by its association with Elon Musk’s Neuralink project.
A recent Daily Mail article, citing “a source familiar with the situation,” disclosed that the chipmaker without its own manufacturing facilities, Sondel, was significantly involved in the development of Tesla CEO Elon Musk’s brain-computer interface, Neuralink.
Following this revelation, Sondel’s shares initially surged by 160% as the rumour spread. This week, they experienced an additional increase of 21%.
In the biotech sector, notable gains were observed with Biome Technologies PLC (AIM: BIOM) rising by 18%, and Poolbeg Pharma PLC (AIM: POLB, OTCQB: POLBF) also climbing 18%, buoyed by independent research indicating a potential $10 billion market for its primary product. Additionally, Renalytix AI plc saw its share price double, even after experiencing a dip mid-week due to less impressive interim results.
In the energy domain, Empyrean Energy PLC (AIM: EME) experienced a significant uptick after completing a £700,000 funding round on Tuesday, offering shares to existing investors at 0.25p each. This price represented a 20% discount from Monday’s closing price, yet the stock surged nearly 50%, potentially influenced by CEO Tom Kelly’s substantial £300,000 investment in the round.
Shares of Coinsilium Group Ltd (AQSE: COIN, OTCQB: CINGF), listed on Aquis, soared by 77% as the company, known for its expertise in Web3 advisory, venture building, and investment, capitalized on the resurgent optimism in the cryptocurrency markets.
